Fillon faces judge inquiry into claims of wife’s ‘fake job’
Presidential candidate nearer to being charged as his far-Right rival faces standoff over EU payments
FRANCOIS FILLON, the Conservative French presidential candidate, was a step closer to being charged last night after a financial prosecutor asked an investigative judge to open an inquiry into whether his British wife was paid large sums of money for a fictitious job.
The prosecutor had been conducting a preliminary investigation into allegations that Penelope Fillon received more than €900,000 (£764,000) for a “fake job” as parliamentary assistant to her husband and his successor over several years.
He has denied any wrongdoing in a case that has been referred to as “Penelopegate”.
The affair has resulted in Mr Fillon, candidate for the Right-wing Les Republicains, losing ground in opinion polls, with the latest suggesting he stands to be eliminated by Marine Le Pen, the Front National candidate, and Emmanuel Macron, his independent rival, in the first round of the election on April 23.
The prosecutor could have chosen to appoint an investigating magistrate on the case, send it straight to trial or drop it. In the event, he chose to appoint a magistrate with more powers to investigate, including tapping phones or placing suspects under house arrest.
It is unclear whether the inquiry will be concluded before the presidential election, scheduled for April 23 and May 7. Mr Fillon has previously pledged to step down should he be placed under investigation formally, but later implied he would not do so, questioning the partiality of the prosecutor.
Under French law, the investigation would be suspended for the five-year presidential term should he be elected.
The Fillons have already been questioned by investigators but Mrs Fillon has declined to speak to the media.
Yesterday, her husband said: “Penelope is ready to talk, but for now I’m not for it. It’s up to me to step to the front line.” The development came as Ms Le Pen was locked in a standoff with French judges after refusing to respond to a summons over allegations she made illegal EU payments to her staff.
Ms Le Pen will not comply with any summons until after elections this year, said her lawyer, Rodolphe Bosselut. She has the right to refuse police interviews because she has parliamentary immunity as an MEP. Judges can seek to have her immunity lifted, but the process could take months, lawyers said.
Bernard Cazeneuve, the Socialist prime minister, warned the anti-immigration, anti-EU leader yesterday that no presidential candidate should “place themselves above the laws of the French republic”.
Ms Le Pen’s chief of staff was put under formal investigation this week after a day of questioning over the alleged misuse of EU funds to pay parliamentary assistants.
Her bodyguard was also questioned but was later released without being placed under investigation.
Yesterday, Ms Le Pen, 48, who has denied any wrongdoing and says she is the victim of “political dirty tricks”, defended her decision to ignore the summons by saying: “I am not obstructing justice, I’m obstructing injustice.”
The European Parliament has accused Ms Le Pen of paying party staff with EU funds which it says should only be spent on European parliamentary assistants. It has demanded Ms Le Pen pay back nearly €340,000 and, faced with her refusal to repay the money, has said it will start docking her salary in order to recover the funds.
A poll yesterday suggested that Ms Le Pen would take 26 per cent of the vote in the first round of the presidential election, with Mr Macron surging to 23.5 per cent versus Mr Fillon’s 20.5 per cent. She would go on to lose to Mr Macron by 38.5 per cent to his 61.5 per cent, according to the poll.
‘The magistrate will have more powers to investigate, including tapping phones and using house arrest’